20 July 2015

The Maniturgium

Congratulations to Long-Skirts, the sometime commenter poet, whose son was ordained to the priesthood this July. She wrote several poems on the occasion, which you can read at her site. This one spoke to me. It concerns the maniturgium, which is used to bind the ordinands hands during the rite.* In the photo taken from her site, her son is on the right, I believe.

THE

MANITURGIA

Linen-wrapped hands

Cloth-wrapped in tomb

First signs of life

Wrapped in the womb.

Hidden, veiled,

Cloaked away

Sacredness

Gold in gray.

Bursting bright

From slate shroud cloud

Gilded sun

Brilliant, proud.

Fingers anointed

Then set free

As from her womb then tomb

For thee.

The Bread of Angels

From His wheat

Seeds sown deep

In loam and peat.

Forever his fingers

Consecrating

Hidden Jesus

Elevating.

The maniturgia,

Now tucked away

To wait for mother’s

Deathly day

When in my coffin,

Hopefully shrived,

My linen-wrapped hands

When I have died

Will reach out begging,

Though I am least,

Lord have mercy

My son’s a Priest!!

_______________

MANITURGIUM: A fine linen cloth, often embroidered with fine
lace or some insignia, used by a newly ordained priest after annointing with
holy oils. ...
This Maniturgium is then put aside by the priest to be used to place in the
hands of his deceased mother before burial. (The Church Visible by
James-Charles Noonan, Jr.)

2 comments:

Oh, thank you Timman, you are too kind. Yes, that is our son on the right, Fr. "Long-Skirts" ummmmmm... no, no, Fr. Flanery and he was ordained in June after 7 long years of study.

The Maniturgia was made by his sister, Sr. Mary Bernard, or as her nephews & nieces call her, "Sr. Mary Bernary" because they can't pronounce "Bernard". She is a Traditional Franciscan.

Painted with green Celtic Crosses and Knots the words, "Per Ipsum, et cum Ipso, et in Ipso", are on it, "Through Him, With Him, In Him" and under that the motto of his high school, Notre Dame De LaSalette, "Contra Hostes Tous" or "Against thine enemy".

There are hardly words when one's son is ordained but now I know what to wear in my coffin...most of us women have the hardest time accessorizing when it comes to dressing up but now I have my own ~`coffin accessory ~ and all I have to do is make sure I have the right dress/skirt to match...oh, God is so good!!

I am going to have him say a Mass for you and all your readers' intentions tomorrow at the 7:30 a.m. Mass! Pinch my toes and call me a jelly donut, it just doesn't get any better than that!!!

A Day That Will Live in Glory

Pray for the Four Cardinals: Burke, Caffarra, Meiser and Brandmuller

“You are the ones who are happy; you who remain within the Church by your Faith, who hold firmly to the foundations of the Faith which has come down to you from Apostolic Tradition. And if an execrable jealousy has tried to shake it on a number of occasions, it has not succeeded. They are the ones who have broken away from it in the present crisis. No one, ever, will prevail against your Faith, beloved Brothers. And we believe that God will give us our churches back some day."